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NORCO: Event teaches guests back country skills

Michael Lewis of Aguanga gives a demonstration on how to pack a mule for Evelyne De La Cerda, 17, of Norco during the Backcountry Horsemen Rendezvous at Ingalls Equestrian Center in Norco on Friday, March 21, 2014.

All weekend long in Norco, you can learn how to pack a mule, camp in the backcountry and use a cross-cut saw to clear trees blocking trails. You can even adopt a wild mustang or burro to ride into the wilderness.

The Backcountry Horsemen of California Rendezvous 2014 kicked off Friday, March 21, with a day of free clinics, demonstrations and entertainment from cowboy singer Dave Stamey, a member of the group.

In the morning, Troy Patton from the groupâs Santa Ana Unit, based in Norco, and Mandy Picozzi from the San Gorgonio Unit, taught packing skills to five Norco High School students inside the Packerâs Pen at George Ingalls Equestrian Event Center.

âTheyâre the future of our trails,â Patton said. âWeâre going to be the dying breed they tell you about in school. What weâre showing them is their legacy.â

As Picozzi watched, Norco High seniors Savannah Yslas and Evelyne De La Cerda, both in the schoolâs Future Farmers of America program, practiced tying down tarp-covered bear boxes on a patient mule. Yslas said learning the right way to work with pack mules was cool.

âI never would have thought that packing a mule would take so much time,â she said. âThereâs a lot to learn, like paying attention to your rope or weighing the packs.â

Backcountry Horsemen of California began in 1981 as the High Sierra Stock Users Association. That group joined with others to create the Back Country Horsemen of America to promote recreational use of horses and other stock.

They protect wise use of wilderness by teaching âgentle use,â also known as âleave no traceâ skills, help maintain trails and donate time, money, packing skills and other services to assist trail maintenance done by the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and other groups.

The event was brought back to Horsetown USA after a successful run last year, marking the second time in 25 years the event has been held in Southern California. Dozens of clinics, classes and events are being offered to teach such things as working with fearful horses, tack safety and backcountry wound care. Vendors sold backcountry ovens, saddles, spurs made in China and nylon practice ropes for kids.

Other visitors flocked to the Bureau of Land Management corrals for the start of wild horse and burro adoptions. By mid-afternoon, nine mustangs and six burros had been adopted, BLM Ridgecrest Facility Manager Grant Lockie said.

Looking at yearlings in a corral, Pamella Kleidon of Weldon said she and many others prefer mustangs to domestic horses because theyâre smart and bond with people once their trust is earned.

Certified yoga practitioner Mari Frank of Valley Center demonstrated what she called joint yoga, which appeared to be a combination of acupressure and massage, on Chepe the horse while owner Terry Jorgensen watched. Frank pushed into the horseâs big neck and showed how to massage certain points.

âYou canât rush it,â she said. âWhat weâre trying to do is make sure thereâs good blood flow going in that area.â

Patton explained why heâs volunteering his time to pass on the skills heâs learned over decades in the backcountry.

âWeâre trying to keep that historical heritage because a lot of people didnât grow up that way,â Patton said.

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